Help with Nanny schedule (ages 1 and 3)

NicoleWI

Sometimes DD is very difficult at night when I get home and I really think part of it is from not having enough activity during the day. Does your nanny have a "schedule" of types of activities? How does she manage the day? Do they go outside or on outings?

honeybee111

We currently share a nanny with our friends.  The girls are  both 2 years old with about 4 months in between them.  Her schedule varies slightly, but she pretty much does the following:  every morning after the girls get dressed, changed, and fed, she has "story time".  Then, depending on the day, they will either go out, or if they stay in, they'll do other activities.  She's done art projects, made playdough, etc.  If they go out, she is allowed to take them to the park, zoo, library(for story time), play center, or the museum.  They'll either be back in time for lunch, or if they eat lunch out, they'll be back after that in time for nap.  Nap is 2 hours, and that's when she cleans up the kitchen, does DD's laundry, etc.  After the girls wake up, she'll play with them a little and give them their afternoon snack.  I get home shortly after that, so they're usually finishing up snack or picking up their toys.

Iblamethebeer

I know you said in your other post that you tried the DC route and prefer having a nanny, but is there a reason your three year old isn't in preschool? 

hansa11

We don't have a set schedule for our nanny to do with our kids, other than to honor their nap times and have consistent lunch and snack times.  But we do ask her to take the kids outside once a day, even if it's a walk around the block or a walk in the stroller.  And I gave her a long list of places to take the kids, like museums or toddler-geared story times and other activities.  If I think they need more activity, I'll tell her in the morning that I want her to take them to a particular place or activity that day.  And we tell her why, (for instance, they haven't been sleeping well at night and we think they need more physical activity) so she knows why it's important.

Also, my son, who will be turning three next fall, will be going to a two-morning-a-week preschool program, so I know that'll add variety to his week.

NicoleWI

She will go to preschool a couple mornings a week next year. Turned three in Jan.

gwennec

We are on our second nanny since we moved out of state last year and had to find a new one. The first was also a mom and had a 3 year old son whom she brought along with her. She was older, in her 40s, very structured and big on getting them out of the house and keeping them active. We were also living in CA, so the weather made it much easier to do that.

Now we live in Oregon and are still dealing with the cold and rain of winter. The nanny  we have now is younger, mid 20s, no kids of her own, but has nannied for many years and worked in a daycare center before. She is very sweet, but I have found I need to be the one who plans most of the activities for them. It is just easier that way since I also work from home and my daughter is much happier getting out of the house in the morning rather than staying in all day. We joined gymboree and I also signed her up for some classes at the local community center. They also go to storytime and to indoor parks. Now things seem to be working well, but I needed to adjust my expectations too. If you let your nanny know that you would like her to do more structured activities with your kids and give her a list of things to do, it will make it much easier.